


NOVA

by YoureA_ForceOf_Nature



Category: Criminal Minds (US TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Criminal Minds Setting, Anxiety, Art, Behavioral Analysis Unit (Criminal Minds), Coffee Shop, F/M, Spencer Reid - Freeform, anxious, artist, baker - Freeform, criminals, i dont know where i'm going with this
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-10
Updated: 2020-08-10
Packaged: 2021-03-06 00:27:18
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,397
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25824358
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/YoureA_ForceOf_Nature/pseuds/YoureA_ForceOf_Nature
Relationships: Spencer Reid/Original Female Character(s)
Kudos: 7





	NOVA

The mumbling of the low chatter intensifies as I push open the door and I am greeted with the familiar sights of my café. I have been busy baking away in the back since four this morning, but now due to the strict schedule I had put in place for myself, it was seven twenty and there was nothing left for me to do apart from waiting for things to chill, prove or bake for the next half hour, so it was time for me to take my break. 

I walked over to my usual seat in the corner of the small café by the window, it gave me a good view of the whole place. The café was bustling with activity as it always was at this time in the morning with people stopping off to get a coffee on their way into work, which meant a lot of the seats were left empty as everyone was hurrying off on their way. As I placed my sketchbook down on the table I once again appreciated the way the morning light floods across the cafe's décor, every morning I sat here and got to take in that view, the view that I had been working towards my heart swelled with warmth and pride. 

I ran my hand over my sketchbook before removing the pencil that I had clipped onto the twine that I had tied around the book to keep it closed. I have been trying to improve my ability to draw a person freehand without the need of any grids, so every morning on my break I try to sketch one of our customers. It wasn't easy for me to get to where I am now with my art, and I still have so much further I need to go. It used to take me over an hour with grids and reference photos to be able to capture any sort of likeness to the person I'm drawing, but by sketching our customers I had to get faster, i never knew how long someone was going to be around. When I first started this exercise the drawings I created were nothing short of an absolute mess, but I've come a long way from there. Or at least I like to think that I have. 

I unravel the twine around my sketchbook opening up to the next fresh page before scanning my eyes around my café once more when I spot him, the one that inspired me to improve my art. I don't know his name but he started to come to our café within a week of it opening up five months ago, there was just something about his style and the way that he sat and seemed to completely lose himself in whichever book he was reading that was inspiring. I think the first book I saw him with was A Study In Scarlet by Arthur Conan Doyle, but it seemed to be a new one every time I saw him. 

There had just been something about him which had caused me to sit and daydream about where I had wanted my art to go, the style I wanted to achieve, the message i wanted to be able to convey, but i knew at the time i was so far off of that that i just had to practice every single day, any chance i got. So I went out after I had finished work that day and I bought a new sketchbook and my routine started the next morning. I have never had the courage to draw that man yet, the change he managed to create in my life without even knowing his name made it seem like drawing him would be important. The pressure i put on myself even though i knew it was realistically no different to drawing anyone else had put me off of drawing him. Last week i decided that i was ready to draw him, and so i waited that morning but he never showed up, I had noticed he would come everyday for a while and then he would be gone for a while. Today was the first day I had seen him since I decided I would finally give drawing him a go. I took a shaky breath and started to sketch trying to capture the energy that the man gave off. Line after line, I spared small glances over at the man, who was now once again fully engrossed in another book, seemingly flying through it as he sipped his drink. As I focused on adding some shadows to the satchel he had laid out on the table before him a shadow came across my page. I looked up to identify the sudden obstruction of light when I saw him standing there, the man I was drawing. I could feel my face heating up with the tips of my ears burning as i looked up at him looking back down at me, a second later my brain kicked into gear and i slammed closed sketchbook, hoping by some miracle that he had came over here for a different reason and hadn't actually noticed that I was drawing him.

“You were drawing me,” he said, instantly tearing up the hope I had.

“I, um, yes, i was, I'm sorry, I'll tear it up, ill get rid of it, i realise it is probably really weird i just am trying to get better at drawing more freely so i try and draw someone every day but i realise now it is incredibly weird and I'm sorry i will get rid of it.” the words were tumbling out of my mouth before i even knew what they were going to be. My hand had started to shake so I clenched both of my hands together in an attempt to make it less noticeable. 

“Can i see it?” he asked as he pushed a strand of his hair out of his face. 

“Um, yeah, sure,” i could feel my heart in my chest as I opened my sketchbook back up and flipped a couple of pages with my shaking hands to get to the right page. “Um, here you go” I said as I turned the book around and gestured for him to take a seat across from me which he did. Seconds later he was sitting examining the sketch of him his satchel hung across his shoulder and sitting in his lap, as I stared down at the table hoping that your heart can't actually burst out of your chest, because it sure felt like mine might do just that.

“This is amazing, and i dont think its weird, i just had seen you glancing over at me and then you were going back to working in your book and i was just curious” he states also sounding a little nervous, i wonder if my very obvious anxiety is somehow transferring over to him 

“The purpose of art is washing the dust of daily life off our souls” i hear the words ring around me before i even realised i was talking 

“Pablo Picasso,” the man sitting across from me says before I have a chance to, so I just nod my head, shooting him a small smile. I was surprised for a second that he knew the quote but then i remembered the fact he had a different book everyday i saw him, so must have a lot of knowledge about a lot of things. “I'm Spencer by the way, I have to head off to make work on time, but it was nice meeting you,” he announces as he checks his watch. 

“I’m Nova, it was nice to meet you too” I tell him as he passes me my sketchbook back. “Here , you can take this,” I tell him as I carefully tear the sheet of paper out and hand it over to him, the paper shaking in my hand. 

“Oh thank you” he says as I watch him take the drawing, the paper no longer shaking now that he was holding it. “Bye Nova” 

“Bye” I say as I watch him head out of the café walking out to the left just as I'm about to look away he turns around and starts to head off in the other direction leaving a small smile on my face.


End file.
